Botany

Family: Rosaceae
Genus: Fragaria
Species: Fragaria x ananassa
The strawberry is a herbaceous perennial that has a central stem or crown from
which leaves, roots, stolons (runners) and inflorescences emerge. The crown
consists of a central core surrounded bya a vascular ring. The core is composed
primarily of pith, with a thin cambial layer surrounding It. At the top of each leaf
along the crown is an axillary bud, which can produce runners, branch crowns or
remain dormant, depending on environmental conditions.
The leaves are arranged spirally; each six leaf is above the first. The leaves are
generally pinnate and trifoliate, they have the epidermis, palisade and mesophyll
layers typical of dicots. Stomata are only on their undersides (Darrow, 1966).
Leaves of most species live only a few months and die after exposure to hard frosts
in the autumn, although some leaves of F. chiloensis remain green throughout the
winter if temperatures do not drop substantially below zero. Old leaves are replaced
in the spring with new leaves that have overwintered as primordia between the
protective layers of the stipule. In a vegetative bud, there are usually five to ten leaf
primordia. The roots emerge from the base of the crown where it comes in contact
with the soil. The root anatomy is typical of dicots. Adventitious roots arise from the
crown in the pericycle, and push out through the cortex and are colonized by
vesicular-arbuscular mycorrhizal species. Stolons consist of two nodes. A daughter
plant is produced at the second node, whereas the first remains dormant or
develops another stolon. The strawberry inflorescence is a modified stem or cyme,
terminated with a primary blossom. A typical blossom has ten sepals, five petals
and 20-30 stamens. Pistils from 60 to 600.
The fruit of the strawberry is an aggregate, composed of numerous ovaries, each
with a single ovule. The resulting seeds are called achenes and are the true fruit of
the strawberry. The embryo consists of two large, semielliptical cotyledons (Darrow,
1966).The receptacle is composed of an epidermal layer, a cortex and a pith. The
latter two layers are separated by vascular bundles that supply nutrients to the
developing embryos.
Propagation
Although strawberries readily proliferate asexually via runners, meristem culture
and heat treatment are commonly used for virus elimination before mass
propagation (McGrew, 1980). Boxus (1974) originally developed the protocol by
which millions of plants could be produced from a single stem. In the first stage, 0.1
0.5 mm meristem domes are excised from newly formed runner tips and are
surface sterilized. Long days or gibberellin treatment are used to stimulate runnerin.
After establishment, the explants are placed into a medium containing cytokinin to
promote axillary bud development and proliferation. After several subcultures, the
plantlets are placed into a medium containing auxin to promote rooting or are
placed directly into an artificial soil mix. A gradual acclimation period then follows,
where plants are moved from the high-humidity in vitro environment to greenhouse
conditions.

Stocks plants are usually heat pretreated at 36C for about 6 weeks for virus
elimination. Individual plantlets from each cultured meristem are tested to verify
that viruses have been removed. Classically this was done by grafting to indicator
stocks sensitive to specific pathogens, but more recently ELISA (enzyme-linked
immunosorbent assay) tests and DNA hybridizations are being used.
Planting stock is dug as actively growing green plants, or as dormant or
semidormant plants whose full dormancy requirement has not been met. Green
plants are dug directly from production fields or by runners (plug plants) under mist
in the greenhouse or field (Bish et al., 1997). Fully dormant plants are generally dug
in early winter and stored until planting. Plants with variant levels of chilling are
generated by digging plants from the field at different times in the autumn and at
different geographical location (Faby, 1997).
Dormant plants are generally stored bare-rooted in unsealed, polyethylene lined
boxes or crates at slightly below freezing temperatures. Sphagnum moss or similar
packing materials are not necessary if polyethylene lines are used.
Fertilization
Fertilization practices vary widely across geographical regions and cultural systems.
In general, nitrogen is applied most frequently and in the greatest amount, followed
by potassium and phosphorus. Soil and foliar analysis are generally recommended
for precise application rates of these and other nutrients. Typical N fertilization rates
are in the range 110-145 kg/ha (Kolb, 1986) with lower rates being used in perennial
systems and the higher rates in annual systems. Although is not commercially
utilized, leaching of nitrates can be prevented by maintaining soil N as ammonium
through chemical inhibition of nitrification and denitrification (May & Pritts, 1990).
Uniform N levels are maintained in hill systems using controlled release fertilizers
and fertigation. In California, N at 200-270 kg/ha is typically placed in the planting
slot or banded adjacent to the rows. A typical analysis would be 22-7-20 or 18-8-13
NPK, depending on location, cultivar and meteorological events. In addition, some
growers might also apply as much as 110 kg/ha of N through the drip system at
regular intervals during the growing season. In Florida, only about 35 kg/ha of N and
K are applied before planting, and most fertilization is done through the drip system.
Micronutrients are applied as necessary.
Soils

Strawberries grow and produce satisfactorily in a wide range of soil types

from sandy to heavy loams, with highest yields achieved in deep fertile soils
with high organic matter and good internal drainage. They are also tolerant
of a wide range of soil pH values, but they grow and produce best on soils
with a pH of 6.0-6.5. Black root rot is commonly diagnosed in strawberry
plantings with compacted heavy soils. Organic matter can be improved
before planting by adding manure, or by planting cover crops or green
manure crops (Darrow, 1966).
References

Darrow, G. M. The strawberry. History, Breeding and Physiology. Holt,

Rinehart and Winston, New York. 1966
Mcgrew, J. R. Meristem culture for production of virus-free strawberries.
Agriculture research results, ARR-NE-11, pp. 80-85.
Boxus, P. The production of strawberry plants in vitro micropropagation.
Journal of Horticultural Science 49. 209-210.
Bish, E. B.; Cantliffe, D. J.; Hockmuth, G. J.; Chandler, C. K. Development of
containerized strawberry transplants for Floridas winter production system.
Acta Horticulturae. 1997.
Faby, R. The productivity of graded Elsanta frigo plants form different
regions. Acta Horcitulturae 439, 449-455.
Kolb, K. A. Putting together a balanced commercial strawberry fertilizer
program. Proceedings of the North American Strawberry Growers
Association. Pp. 41-44. 1986.
May, G.; Pritts, M. P. Strawberry nutrition. Advances in strawberry production
9, 10-24.